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A Heck of a Way to Choose a President

Every four years the American electorate journey to the voting booths to select someone to lead the Executive Branch.

In between Presidential elections, most Americans concentrate on fantasy football, holidays, beer, entertainment, and social media. The issues? Not so much.

Oh, everyone has opinions. They might like the person who looked and sounded presidential. However, they possess scant knowledge of that politician’s political history.

And, let’s be honest. Most people only care about an issue or two, and are already decided. Democrats and Republicans are guaranteed at least 40% of the vote, even if their candidate’s only talent is repeating a slogan. Either party could run Donald Duck as their candidate, and he would receive tens of millions of votes.

Many journalists today endeavor to be the focus of attention, rather than being informed or bi-partisan. Then again, perhaps it is better that they no longer give the pretense of being objective. Why continue the charade?

Rather than discuss real issues that affect America, most journalists prefer to pontificate poll numbers. Think about this for a second. The voters do not follow the issues, they know neither American history nor the Constitution, and are more interested in keeping up with the Kardashian’s than current events. Poll obsession is more of a sporting event than news.

And, I love how journalists today insist that America needs more diversity – yet over ninety percent of them vote for the Democrat.

What kind of people are journalists? If Jesus said, whoever among them is without sin can cast the first stone, the poor adulteress would be pummeled to death.

As for the “undecided” who truly determines the outcome, most of them are undecided about why they are undecided. Ask them what issue is most important to them, or when they will decide, and they will tell you that they can’t decide. These are the people you get stuck behind at McDonald’s. They take forever to order – as if they have never been to McDonald’s before.

The debates are really a series of gotcha questions, and catchy one-liners. Of course, the candidates’ staff writes those poll-tested one-liners before the debates, so I fail to understand their value. I’m sure our enemies just tremble at “Hope and change,” “Leave no child behind,” and “Forward.”

Oh, and disregard the fact checkers – another good idea ruined by political intervention. I’ve checked some of the checkers, and most of their checks don’t check out. Thus the age-old question: how many checks could a fact checker check if a fact checker could actually check facts?

And why do Iowa and New Hampshire wield so much power in the primary elections? The last time Pennsylvania’s primary vote mattered Rosalynn Carter was shopping for Jimmy’s sweaters. There is something seriously wrong with an election process when the sixth most populous state has no determining power. The primary process seems eternal, yet manages to ignore most Americans when selecting a party candidate.

Then there’s the political commercials. Some people believe that they must be factual, or candidates could be sued. Wrong. The First Amendment protects lies as well as truths in politics. It’s probably the main reason politicians love to cite the First Amendment in their speeches.

As for the internet . . . well, it’s the internet! Are you really going to trust a political article that is sponsored by a link to Bigfoot spotted by the Mars rover?

After nomination speeches that no one remembers, annoying robo-calls, ubiquitous yard signs, political, junk mail, and the general election debates and subsequent election, the Inauguration Day ceremonies seem anticlimactic. Regardless, just days later, discussion begins on the next Presidential election in four years. And the great American tradition begins again.